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Segesdi M, Brabant D, Cornette R, Houssaye A. How does the shape of the wing and hindlimb bones of aquatic birds relate to their locomotor abilities? Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2024. [PMID: 38803316 DOI: 10.1002/ar.25512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2023] [Revised: 05/07/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Aquatic birds represent diverse ecologies and locomotion types. Some became flightless or lost the ability for effective terrestrial locomotion, yet, certain species excel in water, on land, and in air, despite differing physical characteristics associated with each medium. In this exploratory study, we intend to quantitatively analyze the morphological variety of multiple limb bones of aquatic birds using 3D geometric morphometrics. Morphological variation is mainly driven by phylogeny, which also affects size and locomotion. However, the shape of the ulna, including the proportion and orientation of the epiphyses is influenced by size and aquatic propulsive techniques even when phylogeny is taken into consideration. Certain trends, possibly linked to functions, can be observed too in other bones, notably in cases where phylogenetic and functional signals are probably mixed when some taxa only englobe species with similar functional requirements: penguins exhibit the most distinctive wing bone morphologies, highly adapted to wing-propulsion; advanced foot-propellers exhibit femur morphology that reduces proximal mobility but supports stability; knee structures, like cnemial crests of varied sizes and orientations, are crucial for muscle attachments and efficient movement in water and on land; taxa relying on their feet in water but retaining terrestrial abilities share features enabling swimming and walking postures. Size-linked changes distinguish the wing bones of non-wing-propelled taxa. For hindlimbs, larger size relates to robust bones probably linked to terrestrial abilities, but robustness in femora can be connected to foot-propulsion. These results help us better understand birds' skeletal adaptation and can be useful inferring extinct species' ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Segesdi
- Department of Paleontology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Institute of Geography and Earth Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Zoology, Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Paleontology and Geology, Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Delphine Brabant
- Plateforme Surfaçus, Délégation de l'Innovation Numérique, Direction générale déléguée aux collections, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France
| | - Raphaël Cornette
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, Paris, France
| | - Alexandra Houssaye
- Mécanismes adaptatifs et évolution (MECADEV), UMR 7179, MNHN, Paris, France
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Lowi-Merri TM, Demuth OE, Benito J, Field DJ, Benson RBJ, Claramunt S, Evans DC. Reconstructing locomotor ecology of extinct avialans: a case study of Ichthyornis comparing sternum morphology and skeletal proportions. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20222020. [PMID: 36883281 PMCID: PMC9993061 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Avian skeletal morphology is associated with locomotor function, including flight style, swimming and terrestrial locomotion, and permits informed inferences on locomotion in extinct taxa. The fossil taxon Ichthyornis (Avialae: Ornithurae) has long been regarded as highly aerial, with flight similar to terns or gulls (Laridae), and skeletal features resembling foot-propelled diving adaptations. However, rigorous testing of locomotor hypotheses has yet to be performed on Ichthyornis, despite its notable phylogenetic position as one of the most crownward stem birds. We analysed separate datasets of three-dimensional sternal shape (geometric morphometrics) and skeletal proportions (linear measurements across the skeleton), to examine how well these data types predict locomotor traits in Neornithes. We then used this information to infer locomotor capabilities of Ichthyornis. We find strong support for both soaring and foot-propelled swimming capabilities in Ichthyornis. Further, sternal shape and skeletal proportions provide complementary information on avian locomotion: skeletal proportions allow better predictions of the capacity for flight, whereas sternal shape predicts variation in more specific locomotor abilities such as soaring, foot-propelled swimming and escape burst flight. These results have important implications for future studies of extinct avialan ecology and underscore the importance of closely considering sternum morphology in investigations of fossil bird locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talia M. Lowi-Merri
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 2C6
| | - Oliver E. Demuth
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Structure and Motion Laboratory, Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield, UK
| | - Juan Benito
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, Milner Centre for Evolution, University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | - Daniel J. Field
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Museum of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Roger B. J. Benson
- Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, 200 Central Park West, New York, NY 12004, USA
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3AN, UK
| | - Santiago Claramunt
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 2C6
| | - David C. Evans
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 2C6
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Lowi-Merri TM, Benson RBJ, Claramunt S, Evans DC. The relationship between sternum variation and mode of locomotion in birds. BMC Biol 2021; 19:165. [PMID: 34412636 PMCID: PMC8377870 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-021-01105-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 07/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The origin of powered avian flight was a locomotor innovation that expanded the ecological potential of maniraptoran dinosaurs, leading to remarkable variation in modern birds (Neornithes). The avian sternum is the anchor for the major flight muscles and, despite varying widely in morphology, has not been extensively studied from evolutionary or functional perspectives. We quantify sternal variation across a broad phylogenetic scope of birds using 3D geometric morphometrics methods. Using this comprehensive dataset, we apply phylogenetically informed regression approaches to test hypotheses of sternum size allometry and the correlation of sternal shape with both size and locomotory capabilities, including flightlessness and the highly varying flight and swimming styles of Neornithes. RESULTS We find evidence for isometry of sternal size relative to body mass and document significant allometry of sternal shape alongside important correlations with locomotory capability, reflecting the effects of both body shape and musculoskeletal variation. Among these, we show that a large sternum with a deep or cranially projected sternal keel is necessary for powered flight in modern birds, that deeper sternal keels are correlated with slower but stronger flight, robust caudal sternal borders are associated with faster flapping styles, and that narrower sterna are associated with running abilities. Correlations between shape and locomotion are significant but show weak explanatory power, indicating that although sternal shape is broadly associated with locomotory ecology, other unexplored factors are also important. CONCLUSIONS These results display the ecological importance of the avian sternum for flight and locomotion by providing a novel understanding of sternum form and function in Neornithes. Our study lays the groundwork for estimating the locomotory abilities of paravian dinosaurs, the ancestors to Neornithes, by highlighting the importance of this critical element for avian flight, and will be useful for future work on the origin of flight along the dinosaur-bird lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talia M Lowi-Merri
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3B2, Canada.
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, ON, M5S 2C6, Canada.
| | - Roger B J Benson
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3AN, UK
| | - Santiago Claramunt
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3B2, Canada
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, ON, M5S 2C6, Canada
| | - David C Evans
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3B2, Canada
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, ON, M5S 2C6, Canada
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4
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Waxing and Waning of Wings. Trends Ecol Evol 2021; 36:457-470. [PMID: 33648760 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2021.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2020] [Revised: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
A major challenge to Darwinian evolution is explaining 'rudimentary' organs. This is particularly relevant to birds: rudimentary wings occur in fossils, as well as in developing, molting, and flight-impaired birds. Evidence shows that young birds flap small wings to improve locomotion and transition to flight. Although small wings also occur in adults, their potential role in locomotion is rarely considered. Here we describe the prevalence of rudimentary wings in extant birds, and how wings wax and wane on many timescales. This waxing and waning is integral to the avian clade and offers a rich arena for exploring links between form, function, performance, behavior, ecology, and evolution. Although our understanding is nascent, birds clearly show that rudimentary structures can enhance performance and survival.
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5
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Terrill RS. Simultaneous Wing Molt as a Catalyst for the Evolution of Flightlessness in Birds. Am Nat 2020; 196:775-784. [DOI: 10.1086/711416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Ashby B, Shaw AK, Kokko H. An inordinate fondness for species with intermediate dispersal abilities. OIKOS 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.06704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ben Ashby
- Dept of Mathematical Sciences, Univ. of Bath Bath BA2 7AY UK
| | - Allison K. Shaw
- Dept of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Univ. of Minnesota St. Paul MN USA
| | - Hanna Kokko
- Dept of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, Univ. of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
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Colihueque N, Gantz A. Molecular genetic studies of Chilean avifauna: an overview about current progress. NEOTROPICAL BIOLOGY AND CONSERVATION 2019. [DOI: 10.3897/neotropical.14.e48588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The biodiversity of Chilean avifauna has been shaped by geological events, geographical factors and extreme climatic regimens. Molecular genetic studies developed to date have begun to provide valuable information to elucidate the effect of these factors on the evolutionary history of Chilean birds. We conducted a search in two bibliographic databases (PubMed and Scopus) over the period between 1998 and 2018 to identify the number and class of articles published in this research field. The quantification of specific research categories was also performed to assess progress in different molecular genetic issues of Chilean birds. Representative studies of the more active research areas: population structure, phylogeography, systematics and taxonomy and genetic diversity, were briefly commented on. Studies on genetic divergence analysis of cryptic species and the underlying genetics at molecular level of adaptive phenotypes in populations, were very scarce. Several types of mitochondrial and nuclear markers have been used, with COI plus D-loop and microsatellite loci, respectively, being the most widely-used markers. However, high-throughput analyses based on complete mitochondrial genomes have also been published. More than one hundred species have been analyzed; the most studied groups being penguins, followed by New World swallows. Although, to date, molecular genetic studies of Chilean birds still require further analysis, the studies available on some species or groups have provided important data to improve our understanding of the origin and evolution of this avifauna.
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Campagna L, McCracken KG, Lovette IJ. Gradual evolution towards flightlessness in steamer ducks. Evolution 2019; 73:1916-1926. [PMID: 31106403 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2019] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Flightlessness in birds is the product of changes in suites of characters-including increased body size and reduced anterior limbs-that have evolved repeatedly and independently under similar ecological conditions (generally insularity). It remains unknown whether this phenotypic convergence extends to the genomic level, partially because many losses of flight occurred long ago (such as in penguins or ratites), thus complicating the study of the genetic pathways to flightlessness. Here, we use genome sequencing to study the evolution of flightlessness in a group of ducks that are current and dynamic exemplars of this major functional transition. These recently diverged Tachyeres steamer ducks differ in their ability to fly: one species is predominantly flighted and three are mainly flightless. Through a genome-wide association analysis, we identify two narrow candidate genomic regions implicated in the morphological changes that led to flightlessness, and reconstruct the number of times flightlessness has evolved in Tachyeres. The strongest association is with DYRK1A, a gene that when knocked out in mice leads to alterations in growth and bone morphogenesis. These findings, together with phylogenetic and demographic analyses, imply that the genomic changes leading to flightlessness in Tachyeres may have evolved once, and that this trait remains functionally polymorphic in two species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Campagna
- Fuller Evolutionary Biology Program, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14850
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14853
| | - Kevin G McCracken
- Department of Biology, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, and Human Genetics and Genomics, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, 33146
| | - Irby J Lovette
- Fuller Evolutionary Biology Program, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14850
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14853
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Lele A, Ottenburghs J. Digest: A single genetic origin and a role for bone development pathways in repeated losses of flight in steamer ducks. Evolution 2019; 73:2030-2032. [PMID: 31429934 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 07/16/2019] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Is there evidence for convergence in the molecular mechanisms underlying the loss of flight in the avian evolutionary tree? Campagna et al. used genomic data to investigate the genetic basis of flightlessness in steamer ducks, a recently diverged clade that is polymorphic with respect to flight. They found an association between morphological changes related to flightlessness and several genes, one of which is involved in growth and bone development, providing evidence for a single genetic origin for flightlessness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhimanyu Lele
- Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, 5801 S Ellis Ave, Chicago, Illinois, 60637
| | - Jente Ottenburghs
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18D, 75236, Uppsala, Sweden
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10
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Hume JP, Martill D. Repeated evolution of flightlessness in Dryolimnas rails (Aves: Rallidae) after extinction and recolonization on Aldabra. Zool J Linn Soc 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlz018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
AbstractThe Aldabra rail, Dryolimnas cuvieri subsp. aldabranus, endemic to the Aldabra Atoll, Seychelles, is the last surviving flightless bird in the Indian Ocean. Aldabra has undergone at least one major, total inundation event during an Upper Pleistocene (Tarantian age) sea-level high-stand, resulting in the loss of all terrestrial fauna. A flightless Dryolimnas has been identified from two temporally separated Aldabran fossil localities, deposited before and after the inundation event, providing irrefutable evidence that a member of Rallidae colonized the atoll, most likely from Madagascar, and became flightless independently on each occasion. Fossil evidence presented here is unique for Rallidae and epitomizes the ability of birds from this clade to successfully colonize isolated islands and evolve flightlessness on multiple occasions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian P Hume
- Bird Group, Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, Tring, Herts, UK
| | - David Martill
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
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11
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Vermeij GJ. Comparative biogeography: innovations and the rise to dominance of the North Pacific biota. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:rspb.2018.2027. [PMID: 30429310 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.2027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2018] [Accepted: 10/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The North Pacific is the largest cold-water source of lineages spreading to other modern marine temperate biotas. How this status was achieved remains unclear. One hypothesis is that functional innovations of large effect, defined as departures from the norm in temperate clades and which confer competitive or defensive benefits, increase resource availability, and raise performance standards in the biota as a whole, evolved earlier and more frequently in the North Pacific than elsewhere in the temperate zone. In support of this hypothesis, phylogenetic and fossil evidence reveals 47 temperate marine innovations beginning in the latest Eocene, of which half arose in the North Pacific. Of the 22 innovations of large effect, 13 (39%) evolved in the North Pacific, including basal growth in kelps and bottom-feeding herbivory and durophagy in mammals. Temperate innovations in the Southern Hemisphere and the North Atlantic appeared later and were less consequential. Most other innovations arose in refuges where the risks of predation and competition are low. Among temperate marine biotas, the North Pacific has the highest incidence of unique innovations and the earliest origins of major breakthroughs, five of which spread elsewhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geerat J Vermeij
- Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
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12
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Buckner JC, Ellingson R, Gold DA, Jones TL, Jacobs DK. Mitogenomics supports an unexpected taxonomic relationship for the extinct diving duck Chendytes lawi and definitively places the extinct Labrador Duck. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2018; 122:102-109. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2017.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2017] [Revised: 10/27/2017] [Accepted: 12/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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13
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Ottenburghs J, Megens HJ, Kraus RHS, van Hooft P, van Wieren SE, Crooijmans RPMA, Ydenberg RC, Groenen MAM, Prins HHT. A history of hybrids? Genomic patterns of introgression in the True Geese. BMC Evol Biol 2017; 17:201. [PMID: 28830337 PMCID: PMC5568201 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-017-1048-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 08/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The impacts of hybridization on the process of speciation are manifold, leading to distinct patterns across the genome. Genetic differentiation accumulates in certain genomic regions, while divergence is hampered in other regions by homogenizing gene flow, resulting in a heterogeneous genomic landscape. A consequence of this heterogeneity is that genomes are mosaics of different gene histories that can be compared to unravel complex speciation and hybridization events. However, incomplete lineage sorting (often the outcome of rapid speciation) can result in similar patterns. New statistical techniques, such as the D-statistic and hybridization networks, can be applied to disentangle the contributions of hybridization and incomplete lineage sorting. We unravel patterns of hybridization and incomplete lineage sorting during and after the diversification of the True Geese (family Anatidae, tribe Anserini, genera Anser and Branta) using an exon-based hybridization network approach and taking advantage of discordant gene tree histories by re-sequencing all taxa of this clade. In addition, we determine the timing of introgression and reconstruct historical effective population sizes for all goose species to infer which demographic or biogeographic factors might explain the observed patterns of introgression. Results We find indications for ancient interspecific gene flow during the diversification of the True Geese and were able to pinpoint several putative hybridization events. Specifically, in the genus Branta, both the ancestor of the White-cheeked Geese (Hawaiian Goose, Canada Goose, Cackling Goose and Barnacle Goose) and the ancestor of the Brent Goose hybridized with Red-breasted Goose. One hybridization network suggests a hybrid origin for the Red-breasted Goose, but this scenario seems unlikely and it not supported by the D-statistic analysis. The complex, highly reticulated evolutionary history of the genus Anser hampered the estimation of ancient hybridization events by means of hybridization networks. The reconstruction of historical effective population sizes shows that most species showed a steady increase during the Pliocene and Pleistocene. These large effective population sizes might have facilitated contact between diverging goose species, resulting in the establishment of hybrid zones and consequent gene flow. Conclusions Our analyses suggest that the evolutionary history of the True Geese is influenced by introgressive hybridization. The approach that we have used, based on genome-wide phylogenetic incongruence and network analyses, will be a useful procedure to reconstruct the complex evolutionary histories of many naturally hybridizing species groups. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-017-1048-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jente Ottenburghs
- Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands.
| | - Hendrik-Jan Megens
- Animal Breeding and Genomics, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Robert H S Kraus
- Department of Migration and Immuno-Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Am Obstberg, 1D-78315, Radolfzell, Germany.,Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, D-78457, Constance, Germany
| | - Pim van Hooft
- Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Sipke E van Wieren
- Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Richard P M A Crooijmans
- Animal Breeding and Genomics, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Ronald C Ydenberg
- Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands.,Centre for Wildlife Ecology, Simon Fraser University, V5A 1S6, Burnaby, BC, Canada
| | - Martien A M Groenen
- Animal Breeding and Genomics, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Herbert H T Prins
- Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands
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14
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Ottenburghs J, Megens HJ, Kraus RH, Madsen O, van Hooft P, van Wieren SE, Crooijmans RP, Ydenberg RC, Groenen MA, Prins HH. A tree of geese: A phylogenomic perspective on the evolutionary history of True Geese. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2016; 101:303-313. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2016.05.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2015] [Revised: 04/27/2016] [Accepted: 05/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Olsen AM. Exceptional avian herbivores: multiple transitions toward herbivory in the bird order Anseriformes and its correlation with body mass. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:5016-32. [PMID: 26640679 PMCID: PMC4662324 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2015] [Revised: 09/16/2015] [Accepted: 09/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Herbivory is rare among birds and is usually thought to have evolved predominately among large, flightless birds due to energetic constraints or an association with increased body mass. Nearly all members of the bird order Anseriformes, which includes ducks, geese, and swans, are flighted and many are predominately herbivorous. However, it is unknown whether herbivory represents a derived state for the order and how many times a predominately herbivorous diet may have evolved. Compiling data from over 200 published diet studies to create a continuous character for herbivory, models of trait evolution support at least five independent transitions toward a predominately herbivorous diet in Anseriformes. Although a nonphylogenetic correlation test recovers a significant positive correlation between herbivory and body mass, this correlation is not significant when accounting for phylogeny. These results indicate a lack of support for the hypothesis that a larger body mass confers an advantage in the digestion of low‐quality diets but does not exclude the possibility that shifts to a more abundant food source have driven shifts toward herbivory in other bird lineages. The exceptional number of transitions toward a more herbivorous diet in Anseriformes and lack of correlation with body mass prompts a reinterpretation of the relatively infrequent origination of herbivory among flighted birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron M Olsen
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy University of Chicago 1027 E. 57th Street Chicago Illinois 60637 ; Bird Division The Field Museum of Natural History 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive Chicago Illinois 60605
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16
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Kelley NP, Pyenson ND. Evolutionary innovation and ecology in marine tetrapods from the Triassic to the Anthropocene. Science 2015; 348:aaa3716. [DOI: 10.1126/science.aaa3716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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17
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Affiliation(s)
- Allison K. Shaw
- Div. of Evolution, Ecology and Genetics; Research School of Biology, The Australian National Univ.; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
- Dept of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior; Univ. of Minnesota; St. Paul MN 55108 USA
| | - Matti Jalasvuori
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Univ. of Jyväskylä; PO Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyväskylä Finland
| | - Hanna Kokko
- Div. of Evolution, Ecology and Genetics; Research School of Biology, The Australian National Univ.; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
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